Field of the Invention
The present invention broadly relates to capping and sealing of bottles or vials adapted to contain a medicament wherein the vials are advanced from conveyor means through an accelerating and spacing screw feed device for the bottles which are operatively placed in pockets in starwheels for passage into and through a capping assembly. The capping assembly includes an automatic cap feed for a plastic FLIP-OFF cap and after placement of a cap, sealing is accomplished and the so-capped and sealed vial is then, according to a plurality of set standards either placed on a discharge conveyor or rejected and passed to a rejection container, the control being governed by a seal test monitoring device which has acceptance or rejection information transmitted as electric signals to energize or non-energize through solenoid actuator means a high speed rejection device according to the invention.
Machines of this general nature have heretofore been known in the art. The known types of machines, however, have had speed of operation limitations dependent on bottle or vial size. Prior known devices have required substantial replacement of parts in order to accommodate bottles of different sizes.
The prior mechanisms due to complexity and structure have been incapable of reaching high speeds in capping, sealing, selection of bottles failing to meet preset requirements, and to reject or accept the completed vials all in a very high speed operation, the machinery otherwise requiring a substantial dismantling and replacement of parts in the acceptance and rejection mechanism to accommodate different vial sizes and caps.
Incorporation of mechanisms for handling of different sizes of vials has, therefore, not only been cumbersome, but substantial down time was required for replacement and/or readjustment of parts.